Conferences

All conferences are conducted in-person. However, there are virtual options available for residents and faculty who are practicing at a satellite clinic on any particular day.

Tuesdays and Thursdays, 8-8:30 a.m.
Residents on elective only

These conferences are entirely case-based and are focused on honing both teaching and clinical problem-solving skills. Presenting residents prepare interesting and robust teaching cases from their own patient care experiences; these cases are then presented and reviewed by all residents in attendance. Residents work on improving their medical knowledge as well as learning clinical pearls that can be used for patient care and preparation for board exams.

Monday through Thursday, Noon-1 p.m.
All residents (unless on CCU/Nights)

Noon conference sessions are taught by medicine subspecialists and general internal medicine faculty, covering core medicine and sub-specialty topics over a 2-year period. Topics are further tailored based on the prior year in-training exam scores to help prepare residents for their internal medicine board examination at the end of residency.

Noon-1 p.m.
All residents (unless on CCU/Nights)

In addition to specialty speakers, every Friday is dedicated specifically to interactive case-based conferences focused on clinical diagnosis skills and the development of evidence-based medical practices. Residents and faculty present challenging or interesting cases that the group uses to work on developing clinical frameworks and schemas for approaching particular presentations.

Noon conference is always a protected didactic hour where residents forward their pagers and patient responsibilities to their attendings.

Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, 1-1:30 p.m.
Each resident (unless on CCU/Nights) once per week

Every week, primary care and categorical medicine residents engage in interactive, small-group discussions on key topics in primary care guided by a primary care core faculty member. Case-based readings and reference articles are provided in advance, serving as an up-to-date source of information on diagnosis and treatment, physical exam findings, and evidence-based medicine.  All primary care residents create a module to add to the primary care curriculum repertoire.

Friday, 7:30-8:30 a.m.
Residents on elective only

Grand Rounds are multidisciplinary, weekly presentations aimed at providing timely updates in research, diagnosis and treatment. Topics vary widely across a full array of medical specialties, with presenters from both Virginia Mason and other nationally recognized medical intuitions.

Monthly, during Afternoon Report/Noon Conference

These conferences are led by third-year residents in conjunction with attending faculty. They focus on improving patient care, with a particular emphasis on systems-based prevention of medical errors as the third-year resident leads the residents through a cognitive dissection of a case to review the factors leading to its outcome.

Monthly, during Afternoon Report/Noon Conference

This is a series of didactics run by our faculty expert in evidence-based medicine over the course of the year covering the basics of interpretations of medical statistics and analysis of scientific literature. All second year residents run a session as well, guiding their co-residents through the analysis of journal articles that they find are pertinent to medical care and reviewing how to apply their findings to clinical practice.

Sessions during morning and noon conference

An important part of caring for patients is understanding the socioeconomic and cultural factors that affect their lives as well as the cognitive and emotional factors that play into how we as individuals and as a community practice medicine. In order to provide residents with a strong foundation for them to be able to deliver thoughtful, patient-centric care, over the year we cover a variety of topics, including the intersection of race and medicine, understanding the cognitive biases that impact our practice and acknowledging the vulnerabilities that we experience when caring for patients to improve resident awareness of them.

Virginia Mason Franciscan Health has a fully accredited Continuing Medical Education (CME) program, sponsoring outstanding continuing medical education opportunities at the Hospital and Seattle Medical Center. These course offerings are open to our residents free of charge. Examples include courses in primary care, cardiology, evidence-based medicine, diabetes management and reduction of health care costs.

Every quarter, each categorical and primary care resident will meet with their assigned mentoring group for an hour-long meeting to discuss personal goals during residency, career aspirations, fellowship and research opportunities. This time lends itself to obtaining guidance from attending physicians and is a space to ask any questions about residency and beyond.